One of the oldest artefacts owned by Britain’s Queen Elizabeth will be among the items included in a new exhibition opening at the Queen’s Gallery, Buckingham Palace tomorrow (07.11.14).
The Rillaton Cup – which is made of beaten gold – will be among the most impressive items in the Gold exhibition.
The display will run alongside the Cairo to Constantinople exhibition, which features a funerary stela, or tablet, belonging to Nakhtmontu from the 3rd century BC.
Explaining how the tablet made its way to the UK, Alessandro Nasini, co-curator of the Cairo to Constantinople exhibition, told the Daily Telegraph newspaper: "The Prince of Wales was allowed to take part in an excavation in Thebes in March 1862, and in recognition of his status he was told he could keep anything that was found.
"The tablet was unearthed, along with a small mummy, both of which were brought back to Osborne House on the Isle of Wight and put on display there. The mummy has since gone missing, and may have been buried in a cemetery on the Isle of Wight, but in 1869 the prince returned to Egypt and brought back 19 mummies, which were given to museums around the country."
The Rillaton Cup, meanwhile, was discovered in a burial site on Bodmin Moor, Cornwall, in the 1830s, with the monarchy assuming ownership of the piece under the rules of treasure trove.
Buckingham Palace to host Gold exhibition
